After all the planning and, some, training it was time to travel to Birmingham to compete in the Hyrox 2023 competition. I have never entered one of these before so it was nice to experience a professional and well run event. Tony and I decided to travel the day before so we could register and have a more relaxed morning, on the day, before starting the competition.
The NEC Birmingham was heaving with athletes and spectators but it was easy to find your way around and get to the places you needed to get to, such as toilets, bag drop and warm-up zone. Watching the early starters was inspiring and made me want to just get going, until I did!
This event is brutal and keeps you at max for a long time (1 hour 46 minutes for me). There were long bouts of ‘getting my breath back’ before going again with running or activities. The format for this competition is: 1km run, 1000m ski erg, 1km run, 50m sled push, 1km run, 50m sled pull (Picture above), 1km run, 80m burpee broad jumps, 1km run, 1000m row, 1km run, 200m farmers carry, 1km run, 100m sandbag lunges, 1km run and finally 100 wall balls before staggering over the finish line.
There were people from all age groups, doing their own thing and getting around the course at their own pace. Some walked to rest, some stopped for a breather but most people got to the end and succeeded in their personal challenge. I was pleased to finish and am happy with my overall position knowing that I could do better with a more consistent training plan. There were things I could have done better to prepare myself more, and I know that, but I didn’t do it!
Having said that, I did have something to get me into the gym and do some training, and, having an event to focus on gave me a bit more motivation to put my gym kit on and go training.
I don’t have anything else booked in for this year, except an operation on my ankle, but I am looking at ‘things’ for next year. The idea behind entering events is to give me a reason (other than health reasons) to keep me active. Just going to the gym because “I should” does not inspire me and I can find many reasons not to go.
So next year will include a cycle holiday (Already booked in May), another Spartan race, possibly another Hyrox and an Olympic triathlon. To get into shape or complete these, I will need to train!
What keeps you going and pushing yourself? How do you stay motivated?
My tips, if you have lost the ‘inspiration’ and want to get back into exercise:
- Pick something you enjoy doing
- Start without putting massive pressure on yourself
- Celebrate every step you take
- Join others and share your journey
- Remove your barriers by planning things and committing to them
- Do it for you
Enjoy planning your active 2024